We normally shy away from reporting on RISC OS appearing in mainstream media, mainly because we wish to avoid being stereotyped as 'fan boys'. However, seeing as this particular discovery is so out of the blue and even managed to make this cynical editor smile, we'll give it a shot.

German RISC OS dealer A4 has revealed screengrabs of coverage of last Saturday's Auto event on a local TV news channel. Broadcast through the ether and via cable TV, the package was shown on the RBW channel.

Clips from the report show close ups of Microdigital kit and posters, RISC OS Select running on an Omega and A4's Detlef Thielsch. It would seem our elusive pals at Microdigital are pretty good at getting press in Germany.

Maybe it's about time we start rattling our BBC contacts. Amusingly, the RBW screengrabs were captured on an Iyonix, using a PCI TV card.

It's in such situations that having a distinctive looking product can really pay off, something Apple seem to have grasped totally.
All of the Iyonixi miss out through being housed in bland cases.
A point to keep in mind when planning Iyonix2, the A9, or whatever, perhaps.

In the absence of a native German speaker, here's my translation of the headline:

'With programmable hardware against the dreaded crash.'

'Arche Acorn User Club presented a novel computing concept in Müllingsen.
The owner of the English manufacturing company himself came to town.'

The article begins 'Totally secure from crashes, fast and programmable in hardware to the individual needs of the user - thus was it presented on the occasion of the "Arche Acorn User Club" (founded 1994) Roadshow; a computing concept that will reportedly instill fear in the PC industry standards which rule worldwide.'

While Micro Digital is mentioned in the subsequent text, the technology isn't refered to by name or really analysed.

As easy as it is to wasp cases on PC syle computer, you still can't squeeze them into a barely 2 inch thick TFT LCD, including the PSU and make it look as attractive and eye catching as the Apple iMac, which I think was the point martin was trying to make.
(It's more common to see an Apple Mac or notebook on TV or in films than a PC!)

Incidentally, people were re-casing Iyonixes into separately purchased Panther-style cases even before Castle offered it as an option. So it's obviously distinctive enough for some people.

The problem with focusing on being "eye-catching" is that it involves paying big chunks of money to designers, and can still end up with a finished product that alienates half the potential purchasers anyway - think back to all the moaning about the bright yellow Risc PC 2 case.